'Minor injuries' for Wilkerson in auto accident

3:06 a.m. EST, June 26, 2012|Kimberley A Martin, Newsday

Jets defensive lineman Muhammad Wilkerson suffered "minor injuries" in a car crash early Saturday morning after his vehicle flipped over on the Garden State Parkway after striking the car in front of him. He is expected to be fine for training camp when players report to Cortland July 26.

New Jersey State Police received a call about the accident at 4:29 a.m. Saturday, according to Trooper Christopher Kay. Wilkerson, the Jets' first-round pick in 2011, crawled out of his vehicle and later was taken to a Newark hospital, where he received stitches in his forearm.

He was charged with "careless driving" and "failure to maintain a lane," Kay said. There was no mention of the other driver's condition in the accident report. Kay said he did not know if that driver was taken to the hospital.

Neither alcohol nor drugs was a factor in Wilkerson's crash, the state trooper said.

Wilkerson had been scheduled to appear at a charity golf event at Oheka Castle in Huntington Mondaymorning but did not attend. Instead, he voluntarily went to the Jets' training facility in Florham Park, N.J., and was examined by team doctors.

"The team is aware of the car accident Saturday morning and has been in contact with Muhammad," the Jets said in a statement.

The 6-4, 315-pound Wilkerson had 49 tackles, three sacks, two passes defensed and a safety in his rookie season. Rex Ryan raved about the 22-year-old's improvement during minicamp and said he expects even bigger things from Wilkerson this season.

"He's going to be hard to ignore, that's for sure," Ryan said. "He was playing at a super-high level by the end of the season and he's actually gotten better."

Tebow show.The E! Network announced it will air a 30-minute special on the Jets' backup quarterback called "Tim Tebow's Wild Rise" at 8 p.m. Monday.